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Finding Your Wedding Dress

Posted: February 16, 2016    |    Category: Blog, Help Tips & Tricks

Finding your wedding dress without stress, how hard can that be?

Well I recently helped a friend find their wedding dress for their upcoming wedding in September and it was no walk in the park (it really brought me back to when I was looking for my wedding dress for my own wedding). But using the knowledge of my own experience I was able to help my friend find her perfect wedding dress fairly painlessly. I created this post in hopes of helping a bride to be say “Yes” to the dress – without all the stress.

I want to mention a few key things right off the bat: I am by no means a wedding dress shopper extraordinaire, I base these tips on personal experience and intend them for those that haven’t embarked on the journey to the perfect wedding dress. If you are fortunate enough to have a wedding planner they will make the whole dress shopping process a lot less complicated, but for those of you on a budget it (like myself) you may find the following information at least a little bit helpful.

 

Appointments

  1. Book your appointment to go see dresses about 2 weeks in advance – especially if you want to book a weekend.
  2. Wear footwear that you can take off and on easily, as you will need to remove them once you enter the bridal shop.
  3. Assign someone to take photos on their phone. It helps if just one person does this so you know that they got the photo and then they can send it out to whomever you wish.
  4. Bring a few friends, family members with you for support and opinion. 3 – 4 other people is ideal as most bridal shops aren’t always super large + it limits the chance of having too many people chime in.
  5. Get dolled-up! Okay maybe don’t get too carried away, but let’s be honest, not all of us enjoy trying on clothes, especially in front of a crowd. Even a little bit of gloss helps to complete the picture, a beautiful bride-to-be.

 

Things You Might Not Know

  1. Bridal shops usually only have sample sizes of dresses, so most of the dresses won’t be your size and will need to be clipped or held in place. Don’t be discouraged.
  2. Depending on the dress you choose, it can take up to 6 months to come in – so be sure to go looking for a dress early if you are going to order one from a shop.
  3. You will usually always need to do some sort of alteration. From the hem, changing the neckline, sizing or adding in a bustle you should give yourself enough time to have everything you need changed.  Most bridal shops will have a list of suggested seamstresses for you to look over if you ask.
  4. Most dresses will come in other colours, so if you find a “diamond white” dress in the style you love but you want “ivory” its usually an option when you order the dress.
  5. You want “poof” but you can’t find a dress that has enough for your liking? You can rent/buy a crinoline slip to add more volume to any dress.
  6. Any dress can have things added/removed from a dress. Don’t like the beads? Want sleeves? Although there are a lot of different factors as to what can be altered on your dress, most things are do-able, given enough time. Remember 6 months before your wedding minimum!

 

Other Helpful Tips

  1. If you plan on wearing something special beneath your wedding dress be sure to wear it when you are trying dresses on.  This will help you see how the dress you picked out will work with your undergarments.
  2. Have a pretty good understanding what you will be looking for in a dress before you go, this will help when you pull dresses to try on. With this in mind, also go outside our your “idea” of the perfect dress as you might find the dress of your dreams and you didn’t even know you wanted it.
  3. Never try on a dress that is outside of your price range. (I say this even though I broke this rule and found my wedding dress) It usually leads to heart ache, and you will compare all other dresses to the “one” you can’t have.
  4. You will get hot changing in and out of these large dresses, bring deodorant. Most bridal shops will have bottled water ready for you, if you ask. Stay hydrated!

 

 

Here is a list of a few Bridal shops in the Okanagan.

Kelowna Bridal

Bliss Bridal Boutique
Ten Fashion Bridal Boutique & Special Occasions
L’amore Bridal & Formals
Ashbury Bridal Couture
Lillian Wild
Red Velvet Bridal Design

Vernon Bridal

Victoria Lane Brides

Penticton Bridal

Louise’s Bridal Fashions

Kamloops Bridal

Aglow Bridal Lounge
First Comes Love
Viva Bridal

 

 

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